


No Hymns Will Come of This Hurt

by Drunkforestnymph



Category: The Magicians (TV)
Genre: F/M, Greek Mythology AU, Orpheus and Euridice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-06
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-10-23 04:55:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17676848
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Drunkforestnymph/pseuds/Drunkforestnymph
Summary: The second time a mortal comes to Hades asking for the return of a loved one.





	No Hymns Will Come of This Hurt

**Author's Note:**

  * For [highestkingbambi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/highestkingbambi/gifts).



> This was based on a prompt given by highestkingbambi on the magicians prompt blog, link here: https://themagiciansprompts.tumblr.com/post/182574973435/kady-travels-to-the-underworld-to-bargains-with#notes

Penny was dead. 

He had been dead, somewhat, for a while. But now he was _gone,_ spending eternity in the underworld all because Quentin couldn’t keep his shit together and get the fourth key back from Fillory. How long could he really go down there before the library caught him? What if they already had? 

Kady had to do something. She had to find a way down there, preferably with a way back out, and no dragons. How hard could it really be? If they’d learned anything the past few years it was that alternate worlds were always much closer than you’d think, and moving between them far from impossible. 

There was a favor she needed to call in. 

\---

The barn was as deserted as last time, wooden siding falling off onto the grass below. The weather was much better this time around, though. And hopefully there would be no appearance from a violent trickster god. “Hey! Persephone!” She yelled into the sky. “Our Lady Underground!” 

She was actually surprised when the woman appeared, especially given how little she’d done to summon her. “You keeping tabs on me or something?” She asked, half kidding.

Our Lady’s eyes softened. “Yes.” Her presence brought sunlight and small flowers interspersed in the grass. 

Kady scoffed, breaking eye contact. Sure, it was sweet she was looking out, but it would’ve meant a lot more if that came before her son’s chaos. “Well, listen, I need a favor.” 

Her face betrayed no emotion. “Oh?” 

“I need to get into the underworld. I need to talk to your husband.” The goddess merely raised her eyebrows and waited for more information. Kady had kind of hoped that would suffice, but of course nothing could be easy. “Someone important died. We need him back.”

“Important people die every day, Kady. It would undermine death itself to bring them back to life.” 

Kady saw red briefly, and waited for it to pass before responding. “The only thing that stopped your son from raping and murdering me is Julia. You owe me this.” In the grand scheme what was one soul borrowed back from the underworld? Sure, they couldn’t do it for everyone, but not everyone could do magic, summon a god, or travel to the underworld. 

“Hades will never agree to that.” It sounded like she herself wouldn’t agree to it, either. But she didn’t need to agree, if Kady could get him on her side. 

“Whatever, that’s my problem not yours. I just need a way down.” Kady let out a breath. “Please.” 

Persephone gave her a long looked and sighed softly. She wordlessly took Kady’s hand and in an instant the barn and trees were gone and they were… elsewhere. 

Internal compass spinning frantically, Kady followed OLU up the stairs to the entrance of a mansion with massive pillars in front. It was probably even more impressive inside, but she was too preoccupied with worry to notice. She was led up stairs and through hallways, past rooms with closed doors. Finally the goddess stopped at a dark wooden door and knocked twice before opening it. 

“My love, there is a mortal here with me who wishes to speak with you.” It seemed almost like they were having a telepathetic conversation - which was not only possible, but probable - before she stepped to the side, allowing Kady to approach his desk. 

He was not what Kady expected, exuding gentle power and writing on a laptop. “Kady, I must admit it’s a surprise to see you.” When he spoke she smelled bonfire smoke and rain. “What can I do for you?” 

“There’s someone down here that I need to bring back.” 

“Do you know what the world would be like if I returned every human soul who was missed? How quickly the world would fall into chaos if death was no longer permanent and inevitable?” He closed the laptop, leaning forward in his chair with an almost stern look. 

“But he didn’t die - I mean, his body did, but he wasn’t in it, he was still on earth. So really you wouldn’t even be missing him. He came down here to get a stupid key so that we can bring magic back, but he didn’t get out in time. But we need him - I need him.” She pushed back the tears threatening to spill over. 

He looked at her for a long time; maybe minutes, maybe seconds, the circumstances were so fucked here she couldn’t tell. She found herself lowering the wards around where Penny lived in her heart. If there was ever a time to overshare, it was now, convincing Hades to see her side. Maybe all the fairytales were right and true love really could save anything. 

“I’m feeling generous today. You may bring Penny back to earth, if…” Her heart jumped . “If you can exit this house, alone, without turning back to look at him. The front door will be a portal that I assure he’ll follow you through, but you cannot see for yourself until both of you are back on earth. You’ll just have to trust me.” His fingers laced together on his desk. Of course he was asking this of her. Trust didn’t come naturally, and there was a rather high risk that he wouldn’t be there at all and she’ll have wasted the one card up her sleeve. But what other option did she have? Walk away empty-handed? Blindly wander the underworld until maybe, eventually, she found Penny, and then maybe, eventually, found a way out? 

“Deal.” 

“Excellent. Well, you know the way out, I hope,” He indicated to the door with an open palm. She walked through it, giving Our Lady an appreciative look and mouthing a ‘thank you.’

Through the halls she heard no sound, no footsteps behind her, no brushing of clothes, no breath. _Just go. Trust that he’ll be there and keep going. Keep going. Keep going._ She repeated it to herself like a prayer.

She passed through the halls, past the closed doors and paintings she hardly noticed. Luckily the way they’d come was fairly straightforward, and she kept her eyes trained on the dead end ahead of her. After that she turned right, and then left, and came to the landing of the staircase. 

She descended with a full view of the room below, practically vibrating now that the front door was within her reach. So far there had been no traps, no tricks… it was suspicious. But not suspicious enough to stop her from taking the stairs two at a time, careful to not even glance anywhere but the portal in case it was assumed to be directed at Penny. No one was around to see, but surely a god wouldn’t be naive enough to trust humans to be patient and honest. 

With her hand on the doorknob and her heart in her throat, she willed herself not to look triumphantly back at Penny, to share the look they always did when they just barely made it out of a disaster alive. They could marvel at their luck later. 

Kady opened the portal wide before she heard the first sound since she’d left Hades’ office - the click of shoes on stone, probably heels. She froze, barely stopping herself from looking back to find the source. _Maybe it’s nothing to worry about, just someone else who happens to be in this bigass house._

“I’m sorry Kady,” She didn’t need to turn around to recognize that voice - she’d heard it in the Neitherlands library more than enough. It filled her with panic and the urge to turn around and physically fight the librarian in the absence of battle magic, but that would mean sacrificing Penny. “Unfortunately Penny’s contract will not allow him to return with you.” Before Kady could speak there was a firm push on her back that sent her catapulting through the portal. By the time she arrived back at the barn milliseconds later she was wailing in anguish. What good was a plot of land in the middle of nowhere if you couldn’t scream in it? 

She’d been so close. So _fucking_ close. If that library bitch would’ve come seconds later she would have Penny here, safe and alive. If she had stood anywhere but directly behind Kady. _Did Hades know? Was it all part of the plan?_ She decided she didn’t care. She would never see him again, and it was the Library that pushed her through the portal and held Penny back, not Hades, even if he did set the terms that prevented Kady from fighting back. 

She hadn’t even gotten to see him. Somehow that was the thought that stuck in her brain, the one she repeated through ugly sobs sitting on the ground. She’d bargained with not one god, but two, and had nothing to show for it; not even a glimpse of the love of her life. The only one who would understand her pain and soothe the ache in her heart was the one she’d lost.


End file.
